by Aven Ellis
“Isabel isn’t lucky. There is no more Isabel, Avery.”
My heart pounds rapidly inside my chest. Another cold wind rips across us, and I inhale the salty ocean air, desperately trying to breathe again.
“No Isabel?” I ask, my voice shaking.
Deke puts his coffee cup down. He closes his eyes, breathes deeply, and finally turns to me.
“No. Avery, I . . . I’ve got to tell you something. And I don’t know how you’re going to react to this, but I have to say it. I’m not with Isabel. I never have been.”
Oh my God. I can’t breathe. I really can’t. I’m so stunned and shocked and hopeful all at once that I don’t know what to do.
“W-Why not?” I manage, my voice still shaky.
“We had an insurmountable problem. One we could never get past to go anything beyond a handful of dates.”
“What was that?” I whisper.
Deke stares at me. “She wasn’t you. Isabel couldn’t be you.”
“What are you saying?” I ask, sitting very still.
Deke takes a deep breath of air before speaking. And I can tell he’s really nervous.
“I like you,” he says. “I know I’m not supposed to, I know I’m your videographer, and I tried like hell to fight it. I swear to you I did. But every time I tried to pull away, I came right back. I’ve never known anyone like you. Never. You’re radiant. And I can’t stop thinking about you. No matter what I do, I can’t get you out of my head.”
Oh my God. I try to speak, but I can’t. I’m so overrun with happiness and joy that a huge lump has formed in my throat, making it impossible to get any words out.
A pained expression filters across his handsome face. “I know you just see me as a friend,” he says softly. “I know that’s why you kept bringing up Isabel, to remind me of where I should be—as your videographer and nothing more. I promise I won’t do anything else to make you uncomfortable. I’ll take you back to the hotel, and as soon as we get back to Chicago, I’ll turn over my assignment to another videographer.”
“Deacon!” I finally cry, finding my voice. “Can I please say something?”
Deke blinks, a surprised look passing over his face.
“Deacon,” I say slowly, smiling at him. “I like you, too.”
His eyes widen in shock. “What?”
“I like you!” I yell out gleefully, as I want to scream it to the world.
We simply stare at each other for a few moments, as it’s finally out there. And neither one of us, it seems, can believe our hearts are beating in exactly the same place—and have been for quite a while.
Finally Deke bursts out laughing, and I do, too. He cups my face in his hands, his fingertips deliciously gliding across my skin, and he nuzzles his cold nose against mine.
“Do you really mean that?” he whispers, sliding one hand underneath my hair so it cradles the back of my head in a loving way. “Do you want to be with me?”
“More than anything,” I whisper back, inhaling the sea air as it mixes with the scent of Deke’s skin.
Then, on Pier 39, Deke kisses me. His lips are warm and soft and gently easing my mouth open. I melt into him and his sensual kiss.
My heart pounds rapidly as I feel his stubble against my face. I taste Baileys on his warm lips, and I kiss him deeper, wanting more of him. I lift my hand to the back of his neck, gently stroking it and playing with the hair that is sticking out from underneath his cap. Suddenly butterflies are swirling in my stomach with an intensity I’ve never known before.
And as I kiss the man I love, I know we need to change our plans for tonight.
“No fireworks,” I murmur against his mouth as I kiss him again.
Deke immediately breaks the kiss, an anguished expression on his handsome face. “What? You . . . you don’t feel anything?”
Oh God! He thinks I’m taking about the way he kisses!
I burst out laughing and frame his sexy face in my hands. “Oh, no, no, no. I definitely have fireworks with you. And I think those are the only ones I want tonight,” I dare to admit.
Recognition flashes in his eyes. “What are you saying?”
My pulse races as I feel his warm skin against mine. The wind whips across us again, and as I inhale the scent of him, I have no doubts of what I want to do tonight. I love this man. I’ve waited forever for him, and I’m not waiting another second.
“Let’s go back to the hotel,” I murmur softly to him. “I want to be with you, Deacon.”
“That’s all I want, too,” he says, pressing his forehead to mine. “You’re all I need.”
So we gather up our things, dump our coffees into the trash, and I put my hand in Deke’s. We work our way through the crowd, eager to get back to the Fairmont.
Suddenly I realize I need to ask him about protection.
“Deacon?” I ask, coming to a stop.
“Yeah?” he murmurs, bending down and lowering his forehead to mine as his hands wind around my waist.
Oh, I really love the way Deke is a nuzzling, hands-on kind of guy.
“Avery?”
Shit. I really have to quit fantasizing about him or I’ll never have time to live the fantasy.
I put my hands on his leather jacket and gaze up at him. “Do you have protection back in your room?” I ask quietly.
Deke grins. “I knew being prepared for everything would eventually pay off.”
I laugh and he does too. I’m about to hail a cab when Deke stops me.
“No, let’s take a cable car,” he says.
“Cable car?” I ask, furrowing my brow. “That will take longer.”
Deke strokes his hands through my hair and gazes into my eyes.
“We have all night together,” he says.
“I know,” I say. But shit, who can blame me? Deke is gorgeous. I want as much time in that fabulous hotel bed as possible with him tonight. “I’m just impatient to be with you.”
“Trust me, you’re no more impatient than I am. But let me show you how much fun a cable car can be,” he says mysteriously.
I manage to nod, though my body is practically on fire now.
We head to the cable car stop and get tickets. When the next one arrives, we hop on. But instead of hanging off the sides, we sit down inside.
As soon as the car starts moving, Deke leans closer to me.
“I don’t care that there are people around,” he murmurs sexily against my ear. “I’m going to kiss you.”
Then he moves his head and presses his lips against mine, sending a shiver of delight down my spine.
Then, the next thing I know, I feel his hands undoing the buttons on my pea coat.
Oh. So this is what he had in mind. A bit of sexy PDA on a cable car. I respond by kissing him again.
Now he’s sliding his hands underneath my coat, along my ribcage, and a jolt of electric thrill shoots through me. The cable car is moving up, up, up and so is my pulse.
“Deacon,” I whisper as we continue to make out.
Now his hands are working the buttons on my little black cardigan. He undoes the bottom two and his fingertips glide across my stomach, across the silver silk camisole I have on.
“Nice,” he whispers against my ear so only I can hear him. “I love silk.”
Ding! I make a mental Post-It note to go to Victoria’s Secret ASAP and purchase their entire collection of silk panties and bras.
His fingers go no further, just stroking my silk camisole across my stomach, knowing just how much to push the envelope in public to make things sexy, but not tacky.
And as the cable car chugs through the city, we begin a little verbal foreplay.
“What else do you love?” I whisper against his ear.
“The way your lips taste,” he whispers back, “like white chocolate and honey.”
I’m so writing a thank you letter to Lush cosmetics for their lip balm.
“I had a fantasy about you,” I whisper to him. “Do you care to hear it?”
Then I kiss him on the mouth, making him wait before he can answer.
Deke’s hands shift to my ribcage, pulling me closer to him, and he softly moans against my lips again.
“Tell me,” he whispers before we kiss again.
Oh my God. This is already hot and delicious and I can’t even begin to imagine what sex is going to be like.
I move back from him so I can see his eyes. “I had to have a pleasant thought before flying. To calm my nerves. And my thought was that you would take this Burberry scarf in your hands, pull me close to you, and kiss me like you are kissing me now.”
Deke grins sexily at me. “Is that right?”
“Yes,” I say, bringing his face toward mine. Then we kiss again.
But this time, I slide my hands underneath his jacket, stroking his sweater, feeling how hard and powerful his body feels. And suddenly, it doesn’t feel so frigid in San Francisco tonight. In fact, I swear, I’m sweating.
The cable car arrives at our stop, and we get off and head over to the Fairmont. We’re barely able to keep our hands off each other as we move through the hotel lobby. There are people waiting for the elevator, so we simply hold hands. But as he holds my hand in his and I feel his masculine skin against mine, I know I’m seconds away from having those hands all over me.
Heat stirs in me once again. Holy shit. I’ve never been this turned on in my life. I honestly don’t know if I can make it to the fifth floor without imploding.
Finally we reach my floor. We hurry toward my room, and as soon as we step inside, coats are flying off. Sweaters are off. Deke is kissing me, frantically, desperately, and we’re working our way back to the bed. He’s now stripped down to jeans and I’m in my camisole and jeans.
But then he abruptly stops kissing me.
“What’s wrong?” I gasp, breathless.
Deke doesn’t say a word. He walks over to where my clothes have been dropped and picks up my Burberry scarf. He comes over to me, gently drapes it around my neck, and just like I described in my fantasy, slowly uses it to pull me into his body.
“Fantasy number one,” he whispers, closing his mouth over mine.
Oh God. Suddenly the difference between sex and making love has crystallized in my mind. For the first time in my life, I’m about to make love with a man. One who cares about my needs and wants and desires.
I’m really about to implode now.
We fall back onto the bed, and I’m gasping for air. This is too much. Too hot. Too steamy. Too delicious for—
“What other fantasies do you have?” Deke whispers against my mouth.
“Foreplay,” I whisper back without thinking.
Suddenly Deke sits up, laughing loudly. “What? Did you just say foreplay is a fantasy?”
I see no sense in lying. Besides, Deke is proving very good at fulfilling my sexual fantasies anyway, so I’m throwing my cards down on the table.
“I’ve never experienced good foreplay,” I say honestly. “I’d like to see what that’s like.”
He lowers himself on top of me. “Well,” he whispers, running his fingertips down my cheek, down my throat, to my collarbones, and slowly skimming my left breast and making me gasp aloud before stopping, “luckily for you, I love foreplay.”
And then he lowers his mouth to the base of my throat and kisses me sensually, his tongue lightly flickering across my skin.
As we begin to make love, I’m suddenly absolutely, 100 percent certain of one thing.
The best fireworks aren’t over the bay.
And Deke has kept his word, because I’m certain he’s about to show me the time of my life tonight.
Chapter 21
Everything in my world has changed.
I’m curled up in bed with Deke, my head resting against his broad, muscular chest. The morning sun is filtering through the crack in the curtains, giving me just enough light to see how tanned Deke’s skin looks against the stark white hotel linens.
Oh, I’m so in love with you Deke, I think, watching his chest rise and fall in rhythm.
And how could I not love him? Well, I was in love with Deke before I slept with him, but last night only made my love deeper. Of course, I haven’t told him this yet—I’m not really supposed to tell him first or after only one night together, but that’s how I feel.
I’m totally, helplessly, madly in love with this man.
Warmth radiates down my spine as I remember everything that happened between us last night. How I experienced full-blown, romantic, passionate sex for the first time.
And afterward, he didn’t reach for the remote control or turn over so he could fall asleep. He actually wanted to talk. So Deke held me to his chest while we talked and laughed about everything and anything, with Deke showering me with gentle kisses and soft caresses the entire time.
Until we decided it would really be wasting the hotel bed if we didn’t go another round, that is.
I sigh happily as my heat flutters inside my chest. I wish he would wake up. I really would like to kiss him now.
I prop myself up on my elbow, staring at Deke, willing him to open his eyes so I can kiss every inch of his gorgeous face.
But he continues sleeping, oblivious to my need to kiss him again.
Hmmm. Would it be so wrong to wake him up?
I clear my throat.
But Deke keeps sleeping.
Damn it. I try again, clearing it louder this time. Deke slowly opens his eyes, adjusting to the light filling the room, and rolls toward me so we’re facing each other.
“Sorry,” I whisper, smiling at him. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
His eyes crinkle up in the corners as he smiles at me, and my pulse soars in response.
“If you’re bored you can turn on the TV. You don’t have to resort to watching me sleep for entertainment,” he teases.
I laugh and lean over him, kissing his delicious golden skin and thinking I’ve never felt this way about anyone in my entire life.
“Let’s take a later flight back to Chicago,” I say, pressing my lips against his forehead. “And stay in bed until check out time.”
“Nice idea, but we’re confirmed on the noon flight, so we can’t.”
Suddenly my stomach clenches. With all the excitement of being with Deke the past few days, I had kind of been able to forget about the fact that I was going to have to get on an airplane again.
Fear begins to take hold of me. I try to think of a way to stall, as the idea of going through the ordeal of flying again is upsetting me.
“Uh,” I say, swallowing, “maybe we can go back on Sunday instead. We should make a whole romantic weekend out of this, don’t you think?”
“Avery,” he says gently, running his hand along the side of my face, “you don’t have to be afraid. You know you can do this. You’ve flown this week. You can fly back to Chicago. You can.”
“But—” I stammer, wanting to protest. But Deke cuts me off by sweetly pressing his lips against mine.
“You know you can do this. And I’ll be there with you the entire time, just like before.”
Although I’m still afraid, my fear loosens with his words. I know he’s right. I know I can do this. And Deke’s belief in me makes me that much stronger inside.
But still, there are a few things he can do to make me a little more comfortable with flying.
“Will you kiss me during take-off?” I ask quietly.
“It’s locked down, Fashionista,” Deke says, grinning at me. He r
olls over on to his back, taking me with him.
“And you’ll kiss me on landing?” I ask, biting my lip.
“Yes,” he says, sliding his hands underneath my hair and bringing my head toward his. He begins to kiss me, and fear begins to pale in comparison to the wonderful feelings burning through my body.
I sit up on him, and his hands shift to my hips. I see nothing but desire burning in his Caribbean Sea-colored eyes.
And I realize I’m not about to waste much more time obsessing about flying when I could be making love to Deke instead.
“Okay,” I say, staring down at him. “So you’ll kiss me on take-off and landing. But will you give me Benadryl in between so I can sleep?”
“Whatever you want,” Deke whispers, staring at me. “I’d do anything for you. Anything.”
And just like that, my fear has officially moved to the backseat as love for Deke takes over as my primary concern.
God, I do love him. And now seems like a really good time to show him, too.
“Well,” I say, grinning at him as I reach for a condom off the nightstand, “then we’d better get busy if we are going to be at the airport on time.”
By the time we get back to Chicago, its past six o’clock. A summer storm has moved across the lake and into the city, and Deke’s windshield wipers beat relentlessly back and forth so he can try and see out of the windshield.
But despite the gloomy weather, I couldn’t be happier.
I turn to Deke, who has his eyes cast straight ahead in concentration.
“This has been the best week of my life,” I declare joyfully. “Look at everything that has happened. I flew on an airplane not once, but twice. I got my spa basket idea off the ground and people take me seriously at Premier Airlines. And best of all, I found out you like me as much as I like you.”
